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Holidays of the Land
This is a list of special occasions celebrated throughout the Landian year. First Day 1 Fir'mo' (January 1) Akin to New Year's Day on Earth, but bigger. The holiday celebrates not only the first day of the new year, but also the day God created The Land, as well as Connor and Brigid. First Day of School 2 Fir'mo' (January 2) First Day of the Spring Semester, and of the School Year. This first went into effect in 905, upon the establishment of the school system. New Order Day (Inauguration Day) 8 Win'yet (February 8) Originally established in 904 as New Order Day, the official start of the Second Order (though it wouldn't be until this date in 905 that the new government actually took office, which leads many to see the declaration of the country's existence as premature; however, in spite of the duly elected government not yet being in place, by this point there was no question that it soon would be). The holiday is somewhat confused with "Coming's End Day," in Aut'yet, which marked the official end of the war in 903. On 8 Win'yet 905, the first world inauguarations were held, and this date took on its secondary name. Schism Day 29 or 30 Win'yet (March 1) In the Landian calendar, all months have either 30 or 31 days; however, on Earth, there is one exception to this rule. The Terran month of February has 28 days (or 29 on Leap Years). The corresponding Landian month of Win'yet has 30 days (or 31 on Quad Years). The fact that this month has an extra two days means that two other Landian months (Sp'gin and Sp'yet) must each lose a day, having 30 where the corresponding Terran months (March and May) each have 31. Aside from the discrepancies of these three months, every other Landian month has the same number of days as its corresponding Terran month. ...28 Win'yet is the 59th day of the Landian year, as February 28 is the 59th day of the Terran year. But the 60th day of the Landian year is 29 Win'yet, whereas the 60th day of the Terran year is March 1, thus setting in effect a divergence of the naming of each date of the month vs. date of the year, between the Land and Earth. (On Quad/Leap Years, the divergence comes on the 61st day, 30 Win'yet equating to March 1, since on those years February has 29 days. In either case, Schism Day falls on the penultimate day of Win'yet.) However, the Landian and Terran calendars resynchronize on 1 Su'gin (June 1). Quad Day 31 Win'yet (March 2) Occurs once every four years, on Quad Years. On those years, Win'yet has 31 days instead of its usual 30, to adjust for the fact that the Land actually takes 365 1/4 days to complete the annual revolution of its sun. (Same exact thing as Leap Day on Earth, except two days later.) Winter's End Day 17 Sp'gin (March 19) The last day of Winter. A day to look back on Winter and say a wistful goodbye to its enjoyable aspects for the year, and to a lesser extent, to celebrate the end of its not so enjoyable aspects. New Spring Day 18 Sp'gin (March 20) The first day of Spring. A day to forget Winter entirely, both good and bad, and look forward to the new season. This is equivalent to the Vernal Equinox on Earth; however, there the date may vary between March 20 and 21, from year to year, according to which date the day and night are of equal length. On the Land, the date is constant, so that one may easily remember it every year. The exact date of our own vernal equinox differs as it does on Earth, though the difference of one day is slight enough that few people see it as making any real difference, anyway. More importantly, the celebration of the changing of the seasons is largely symbolic, in the majority of the Land's villages, which are located in the tropic zone (First Village itself being very near the Equator). Such holidays attained greater significance with the founding of the villages of what is sometimes called the Northern Alliance, where seasons are more markedly different. Nevertheless, the changing of the seasons has long been celebrated even in the Land's tropical villages, due to Landians' fascination with stories from Earth, which include various aspects of seasons which were never experienced first hand on the Land until the founding of the northern villages. Half Synch Day 30 Sp'gin or 1 Sp'mo' (April 1 or 2) This is not an actual holiday, though there are those who think of it as one, since at this point the two-day divergence between the Land's calendar and that of Earth is reduced to one day. There is, however, disagreement among those who observe the date on whether to do so on the last day of Sp'gin or the first day of Sp'mo'. Ice Cream Day 2 Sp'mo' (April 3) This is not an official holiday, though many people enjoy celebrating it, anyway. It was first established in 819 by a spirit-talker named Selgart, whose family owned a popular ice cream parlour in Olek. The story goes that he happened to be talking with one of his spirit friends that day, when the spirit (whose name is not specified in the story) idly mentioned that on Earth, there was a language in which the word for the number "two" was "ni," which, if that number was combined with the Landian month, would make the date "Sp'mo' ni." Selgart and the spirit happened to be getting ice cream in his family's shop, and because of this little joke, they both chose to get spumoni. Since then, the ice cream parlour has offered specials on all their ice cream, every year on 2 Sp'mo'. Though it isn't known whether the story of the origin of the shop's annual sale is true, that story has spread throughout the Land in the decades since then, and many ice cream parlours in other villages have since begun holding their own sales on that date. See also Slang and Expressions. Mor's Birthday 22 Sp'mo' (April 23) This is a holiday celebrated by elves and merfolk, in honor of Mor, who had the idea (centuries before either race was created) to use magic to create mythical creatures. If not for his work, neither race would have existed. It is widely believed that it was on his 21st birthday in 539 that he first had this idea. Son's Day 7 Sp'yet (May 8) A day when parents show their appreciation for their sons. Mother's Day 13 Sp'yet (May 14) A day when children show their appreciation for their mothers. Pilgrimage Month Su'gin (June) Annual pilgrimage of The Order to Monab, first organized by Bishop Archibald in 406. Synch Day 1 Su'gin (June 1) Day 152 on both Earth and the Land (153 on Leap/Quad Years), the day the Landian and Terran calendars resynchronize. The calendars will remain in synch until the next year's Schism Day. Summer Vacation begins 2 Su'gin (June 2) The last day of the Spring Semester is actually 30 Sp'yet, which is a "field day" at school, though unlike the last day of the school year, students generally choose to celebrate the first official day of Summer Vacation as a holiday. (1 Su'gin is discounted because there is never school on We'gindays, anyway.) Brist's Day 7 Su'gin (June 7) Celebrates the day in the year 100 when Lucifer introduced the concept of religion to Brist, who also first coined the term spirit-talker. It is because of this holiday that the annual Pilgrimage is set in the month of Su'gin, and is the most important date in The Order's year, other than "First Day." Daughter's Day 13 Su'gin (June 13) A day when parents show their appreciation for their daughters. Father's Day 19 Su'gin (June 19) A day when children show their appreciation for their fathers. Spring's End Day 20 Su'gin (June 20) The last day of Spring. A day to look back on Spring and say a wistful goodbye to its enjoyable aspects for the year, and to a lesser extent, to celebrate the end of its not so enjoyable aspects. New Summer Day 21 Su'gin (June 21) The first day of Summer. A day to forget Spring entirely, both good and bad, and look forward to the new season. This is equivalent to the Summer Solstice on Earth; however, there the date may vary between June 20 and 21, from year to year, according to which date has the longest daytime of the year. On the Land, the date is constant, so that one may easily remember it every year (the exact date of our own summer solstice differs as it does on Earth, though the difference of one day is slight enough that few people see it as making any real difference, anyway). For further notes, see "New Spring Day." World Fair Su'mo' (July) Occurring once every four years, on Quad Years. Villages take turns hosting it, in the order of their founding. It has been said that it is like a combination of various events on Earth, including the Olympic games, and Mardi Gras, with all sorts of amusement park rides and games, as well as concerts, and a huge flea market/farmer's market/craft fair, all kinds of art and science exhibits, etc. Protestant Pilgrimage Month Su'yet (August) Annual pilgrimage of Protestant spirit-talkers to Plist, first organized by Bishop Therman in 902. Election Day 8 Su'yet (August 8) The first federal elections (and local elections) were held in 904, the year when the Second Order was officially established. The King or Queen and all other federal and local officials are elected on this day, and other issues may be voted upon. A monarch is elected every four years, federal officials every five years, and village officials every three years. Six months after Election Day, on 8 Win'yet (of the next year), elected officials take office. First Day of School (Autumn Semester) 2 Aut'gin (September 2) The end of Summer Vacation, when students return to complete the school year. Tax Day 15 Aut'gin (September 15) According to the tax law which was passed in 902, this was the day on which everyone who is or has been employed during the past fiscal year (15 Aut'gin to 14 Aut'gin the following calendar year) would be required to submit taxes. Taxes were collected for the first time in LY 903, based on the income people had received since the tax law was passed the previous year. However, the system was amended about a week after Tax Day in 905, at which point employers would automatically begin deducting income tax from their employees each pay period. So, beginning in 906, Tax Day has been the deadline for employees (or their accountants) to submit any claims of overpayment, requesting partial returns from the Treasury Department. Summer's End Day 21 Aut'gin (September 21) The last day of Summer. A day to look back on Summer and say a wistful goodbye to its enjoyable aspects for the year, and to a lesser extent, to celebrate the end of its not so enjoyable aspects. New Autumn Day 22 Aut'gin (September 22) The first day of Autumn. A day to forget Summer entirely, both good and bad, and look forward to the new season. This is equivalent to the Autumnal Equinox on Earth; however, there the date may vary between September 22 and 23, from year to year, according to which date the day and night are of equal length. On the Land, the date is constant, so that one may easily remember it every year (the exact date of our own autumnal equinox differs as it does on Earth, though the difference of one day is slight enough that few people see it as making any real difference, anyway). For further notes, see "New Spring Day." Samhain 31 Aut'mo' (October 31) The name (pronounced "sa-win") is borrowed from a Celtic holiday on Earth, which was learned of on the Land from spirits. While Landian celebrations of Samhain sometimes include some traditional elements of the Celtic holiday as well as of Dia de los Muertos (a similar Earth holiday), and perhaps some uniquely Landian innovations, it is most commonly celebrated on the Land in much the same way a later derivative holiday, "Halloween," was celebrated on 21st century Earth. It's called Samhain on the Land for no particular reason except that people like the name (and of course, Landians often tend to attempt to use the oldest subword they are aware of, for certain things). The day usually begins by remembering deceased loved ones, whether just thinking about them or sharing stories about them, which is often done in a cemetery. Most villages also hold festivals that include such things as farmers' markets, hay rides, haunted houses, scary plays, music, dancing, and various foods and drinks that traditional to the holiday. On Samhain night, people- especially children- like to dress up in costumes, attend parties, go trick-or-treating (a Terran tradition of going door to door to ask for candy), carve pumpkins into "Jack-o-Lanterns," tell scary stories, play pranks, or games (such as Mr. Squish-Squash), etc. Battle of Triscot 9 Aut'yet (November 9) This is not an official holiday on the land, but rather a day of remembrance and mourning among Protestants. It commemorates the day in 903 when the last major battle of theThe Coming of the OrderComing of the Order was fought, on the estate of Adam of Triscot, in which Adam, most of his family and allies were killed. ...Or so it was thought until 912. But regardless of revelations about what really happened that day, it remains a tragic event, and as the last major battle of the war, it is an important date for both Protestants and supporters of the Order; a date never to be forgotten. (Many Protestants observe this date in lieu of "Coming's End Day.") Coming's End Day 29 Aut'yet (November 29) Originally established in 903 as the official end of the Coming of the Order, 20 days after the war's last major battle. The holiday is somewhat confused with "New Order Day," in Win'yet, which commemorates the official start of the Second Order. Coming's End Day is distinct from New Order Day in that there were a few months of general chaos remaining prior to the official establishment of the Second Order. The old ways of the world were essentially over, but the new ways were not quite in place, and there were some mopping up actions still under way, even if the Order didn't consider them an actual part of the war (but rather acts of terrorism). Last Day of School 18 Las'mo' (December 18) Last day of the Autumn Semester, and of the School Year. Final exams will have been completed by the previous day, at the latest, so this is basically a "field day" during which teachers mostly finish grading papers, and students mainly party and socialize with friends, who they may not be seeing again for awhile, until the "First Day of School" on 2 Fir'mo'. Commencement 19 Las'mo' (December 19) Those students who have completed the required curriculum for 10th Grade (usually at age 16) are given mental stamps for their adult license. This is usually the last stamp a person receives, making them a fully legal adult. This is also graduation day for students who have completed four years of university, at which time they receive a degree in a particular trade they've mastered (in addition to furthering their general education). Autumn's End Day 20 Las'mo' (December 20) The last day of Autumn. A day to look back on Autumn and say a wistful goodbye to its enjoyable aspects for the year, and to a lesser extent, to celebrate the end of its not so enjoyable aspects. New Winter Day 21 Las'mo' (December 21) The first day of Winter. A day to forget Autumn entirely, both good and bad, and look forward to the new season. This is equivalent to the Winter Solstice on Earth; however, there the date may vary between December 21 and 22, from year to year, according to which date has the longest nighttime of the year. On the Land, the date is constant, so that one may easily remember it every year (the exact date of our own winter solstice differs as it does on Earth, though the difference of one day is slight enough that few people see it as making any real difference, anyway). For further notes, see "New Spring Day." Last Day 31 Las'mo' (December 31) The last day of the year. A day to reflect upon and say a wistful goodbye to the old year, while looking forward to the coming year (which is itself celebrated on "First Day"). Many people like to stay up until midnight on Last Day, and there are various traditions for what to do at the exact moment the year changes. It's said to be much the same as "New Year's Eve" on Earth. Year-long holidays In the year 80, it was suggested that any year ending in the digits "00" be celebrated as "Century's End Year," and any year ending in the digits "01" be celebrated as "New Century Year." Obviously, the first Century's End Year and New Century Year were not celebrated until 20 and 21 years later, respectively, and thereafter have been celebrated every 100 years. There are no specific elements to the celebration of these occasions; it's just something which everyone thinks of throughout the year(s), and considers rather auspicious, in a vague way. Also suggested in the year 80 were the celebrations of "Millennium's End Year" and "New Millennium Year," though of course the first occasion of these have yet to be reached.... See also *Calendar of the Land *cultural appropriation Category:Culture